Singapore. Indonesia admits that fully implementing the 2021 Myanmar peace plan would take time, as ASEAN members try to defuse the crisis in its backyard.

Over the weekend, most ASEAN foreign ministers gathered in Bangkok to hold an informal meeting with U Tin Maung Swe, their counterpart from Myanmar’s military-backed government. When the coup hit Myanmar in February 2021, ASEAN produced what the group called the “five-point consensus” within months. This lists the five tasks that ASEAN wants Myanmar to complete, including ending the violence and conducting a constructive dialogue between the conflicting factions. 

The Bangkok talks had ASEAN members still sticking to this peace plan despite the sluggish progress. According to Foreign Minister Sugiono, the group has seen some signs of an inclusive dialogue.

“This process -- or nation-building -- is not something that we can achieve instantly. … So we have to appreciate the steps that Myanmar has taken to implement the five-point consensus. The situation is complex,” Sugiono said in Jakarta on Tuesday. 

He went on to say that the group needs to iron out the details on how the Southeast Asian bloc measures progress. 

“For instance, we need to translate the cessation of hostilities [or violence in the five-point peace plan]. … If hostilities stop in one place in the country, is it already seen as progress? Should this happen nationwide to be viewed as an improvement?" Sugiono said.

“And this takes time. Should we let Myanmar be unrepresented in ASEAN forums for that long?”

Indonesia is also open to hosting Myanmar-related dialogues, if necessary. 

Sugiono, at the time, had only just received his Vietnamese counterpart Le Hoai Trung, who had joined the Bangkok meeting. Jakarta and Hanoi also agreed to make the five-point consensus “the main framework” for the Myanmar crisis.

The turmoil all started after Myanmar’s military overthrew the democratically elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in February 2021. The junta chief-turned-president Min Aung Hlaing formally rose to power in April 2026 after a lopsided election slammed by critics as a sham. It was also then that he unveiled plans for peace talks with opposition armed groups within 100 days, an offer that key rebel groups had declined.

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